Erik ten Hag played key role in Ralf Rangnick’s Man United departure

Rangnick left Man United last month

Erik ten Hag was a major instigator in Ralf Rangnick's decision to leave Manchester United permanently due to his reluctance to work with the German. Rangnick was set to move into his two-year consultancy role, which had been agreed when he initially took over from Ole Gunnar Solskjaer as manager of United until the end of the season. But the German's time in charge was disastrous - winning just 11 of his 29 games in charge - as well as several reports of issues in the dressing room emerging during his short-lived tenure.

Rangnick was expected to balance his duties at United with his new role as Austria manager

Following the confirmation that Ten Hag would take over as manager it was widely expected that the two would work together to help rebuild the side at Old Trafford. However just a week after the end of the season, United confirmed that Rangnick had agreed to leave his position entirely to take over as manager of Austria on a full-time basis after initially planning to balance both roles. A statement from the club said: "We would like to thank Ralf Rangnick for his efforts as interim manager over the past six months. "By mutual agreement, Ralf will now focus solely on his new role as manager of the Austria national team and will not therefore be taking up a consultancy role at Old Trafford. "We would like to wish Ralf the best of luck in this next chapter of his career." https://twitter.com/ManUtd/status/1530902970124181504?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1530902970124181504%7Ctwgr%5E%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.joe.co.uk%2Fsport%2Fralf-rangnick-man-united-339003

Ten Hag had doubts about working with Rangnick

Reports from ESPN though have said that the reasoning behind Rangnick's sudden departure was largely because Ten Hag no longer wanted to work with him. The Dutchman had allegedly become concerned at some of Rangnick's claims in his press conferences, including the idea that the Red Devils needed as many as 10 signings this summer. United also reportedly made Rangnick sign a non-disclosure agreement as he prepared to leave the club but he was left frustrated by the way the club handled his departure after he only received a phone call from Ten Hag, despite requesting a face-to-face meeting. Ten Hag is currently working away to bring in his first signing of his tenure, with Barcelona's Frenkie de Jong the primary target for his new project. Related links:

• Erik ten Hag ‘convinces’ Frenkie de Jong his future lies at Man United
• Ralf Rangnick’s Man United consultancy role to be scrapped
• Erik ten Hag orders full report on every Man United player ahead of pre-season